


Unidentified Orange Object

by look-at-me-im-special (JunkDrawerAdventures)



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Art School, College AU, Coming Out, M/M, artist!kenma, making new friends, using fictional characters as a coping mechanism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-03
Updated: 2016-10-08
Packaged: 2018-08-12 20:20:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7947703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JunkDrawerAdventures/pseuds/look-at-me-im-special
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unidentified orange object flew into the bathroom and right into Kenma. Had he been just one step closer to the door he would have probably fallen over but he managed to steady himself just in time.</p><p>“Oh my God,” the orange projectile said. “Are you okay?”</p><p>It was a loaded question.</p><p> </p><p>Because the world needed another angsty college AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Safety School

**Author's Note:**

> I've been wanting to write something multi-chaptered for a while now and since I started college this week I figured an AU would only be appropriate.
> 
> Please note that I have no idea how japanese colleges work. Or American colleges. Hell, I don't even know how my own college works I'm just making it up as I go along :)

Kenma hadn't exactly planned to spend his first day of college crying in a bathroom stall, but here he was. With the toilet seat down and his knees pulled up, trying not to make too much noise. He was a mess. A snotty, anxious mess and he hated it. As his tears left marks on his jeans he considered whether it was too early to just drop out. Would it even be considered dropping out if you hadn't made it through your first day? Was there some type of loophole in the system that allowed him to walk out and pretend he never even applied in the first place?

He thought about his mom and how proud she had been when she dropped him off two days ago. And he thought of how he had secretly kind of looked forward to his art classes, but then he thought of home. He reached to get his phone from his pocket and wiped his nose with the sleeve of his sweater. Pretty disgusting, but he couldn't care less at this moment. 

He opened his messages and stared at the one Kuroo had sent him last night.

 

22:14 Kuroo  
Good luck tomorrow! You're gonna be fine <3

 

He was not fine. Not even a little. He tried to focus on sending a reply so he could stop crying for one god damn second and maybe make it out of this bathroom stall one day.

 

11:21 Kenma  
I cant do it its too much. please call me

 

He hit send without bothering to check his grammar. He just really needed his best friend right now. Maybe they could hang out tonight. Kuroo's college was only three hours away. He would have to take a train and two buses, he had already checked. He could just hide in Kuroo's dorm until everyone had forgotten about college. It had probably been a stupid idea in the first place. 

 

**************

 

The day had started all wrong to begin with. He'd woken up to a strange ceiling and the noises of a dormitory that was slowly coming to life. Or maybe it just never went to sleep, who knew. He reached for his phone on the desk next to his bed and turned off the first alarm. He had set several of them to allow him to snooze for a bit, but as his mind wandered to the events of the upcoming day he was suddenly wide awake. He'd been at the campus for roughly forty eight hours, but had spent this time in blissful ignorance. Hiding in his room, playing games, only feeding himself with the snacks his mom had bought for him and only leaving to go to the bathroom. 

He kind of regretted that when rolling out of bed. Maybe he should have walked his classes to prepare or at least look up where everything was on a map. He wasn't used to finding out these things for himself. When he'd started high school Kuroo had been there for him to show him around. To tell him where everything was and what teachers to play nice to. But he wasn't there. He was supposed to fricking be there. It wasn't supposed to be like this. 

Kenma had applied to college in Tokyo happily and he and Kuroo had even talked about sharing a dorm the upcoming year. Kuroo could show him to all his classes and he wouldn't have to worry about making new friends, he could just tag along and all would be good.

Except he didn't get in. 

Kenma shivered at the thought as he reached for the grocery bags on his desk. He found only a bottle of diet coke – his mom said that the regular variety was bad for you – and two packs of ramen that he didn't feel like preparing. 

No breakfast then. 

He turned around and looked at his room. There really wasn't much more to it than the bed and the desk, the latter having a reasonably sized window above it, letting in all the light. It was completely covered with pencils and paintbrushes and paints and all the other things from the list. He didn't know where he was going to store everything. He also had a dresser that doubled as a countertop for preparing food as he had placed a rice cooker and a small microwave on top. He could just go to the dining hall to get his meals, but he'd known himself longer than today and gotten himself a way out if necessary. If only he knew how to use either of them.

The other half of his room was a mirrored copy of his own, except the bed hadn't been slept in. There were two unopened suitcases by the bed and a backpack sat neatly on top of the desk. He had seen his roommate very briefly the day that he moved in. Seemed like a decent kid, not the type to make a huge mess and didn't look like he snored. Kenma hadn't been able to test this theory as his roommate had rushed right out of the room after a quick introduction. He hadn't been back since and for all intents and purposes Kenma didn't even have a roommate. He kind of liked it that way.

He opened the top drawer of his dresser and was immediately greeted with the sweater with college logo that his mom had gotten for him (“Everyone will be wearing them” she had said). It was grey with the words Miyagi College on it in blue and white letters. 

Miyagi. His 'safety school' as his mother had called it. Because it was 'important to keep his options open'. He hadn't even bothered to visit the place and just sent them a copy of the application he had used for the school in Tokyo. He had never even considered actually going there and when he'd gotten rejected for his first choice he figured he would just stay at home. Maybe find himself a job. 

But then his mother had shown up with the Miyagi sweater all excited that 'her little boy' was going to college. Kenma had tried to speak up, but she went on and on about how he had to 'make something of himself' and 'learn to be independent'. He had disagreed with her like a small child and gone over to Kuroo's house. But his best friend took sides with his mother. Kuroo had been visably disappointed that Kenma didn't get in, that was for sure, but he had also stressed that it would be good for him to go to college. In the middle of his speech Kenma had started to cry and Kuroo tried to pick up the pieces by coming up with a game plan. Kuroo had a glimmer in his eye and said that maybe he could use this to convince his mother to let him do art.

He still wasn't sure how they pulled it off, Kuroo did most of the talking so that probably helped, but they had reached an agreement in the end. Kenma would go to college and his mother would let him major in art. It had been a little flicker of hope.

He'd even allowed himself to get a little excited over the summer break. Kuroo had promised to visit every single weekend and they could both go home during breaks. He had even spent some more time sketching to prepare for his classes and it was good to have something to do besides gaming. Maybe he could make it work. 

Kenma tried to remind himself of his past excitement and hype himself up as he got dressed. He chose a black V-neck shirt – it was too hot for the stupid college sweater anyway – and his favourite pair of jeans. He wore his white Dr Martens boots that Kuroo had convinced him to get after he had worried they'd be too edgy. God he wished Kuroo was here. He always made it easier for Kenma to do scary stuff. 

He left half an hour early with his schedule in hand and his backpack over his shoulder looking like a proper freshman. The campus was small with lots of greenery and trees. Most of the lecture halls and other buildings surrounded one large, open field, so Kenma managed to find where he had to go pretty easily. But boy was it overwhelming. The building was large and monumental, but echoed like crazy. There weren't even that many students yet, but it already sounded like an orchestra. Kenma hurried his way into the lecture hall and was disappointed to find that all the seats in the back row had already been taken. If only he'd gotten here earlier. He ended up settling for a seat at the edge of the first row were he didn't feel too surrounded. 

The room slowly started to fill up. The louder it got the harder it became for Kenma to drown out the intrusive thought that he had been trying to keep at bay all morning.

_You're such a mess._

The professor walked up to the front of the class and it took Kenma nearly twenty seconds to remember that he should probably get out his stuff and start taking notes.

_All the other kids probably think you're weird._

He couldn't focus what his teacher was saying and nothing seemed to make sense. This was art history. He was supposed to be good at this.

_This is why the school in Tokyo didn't accept you._

It was too much for Kenma to deal with and his eyes kept flicking toward the door

_You have a whole year of this left. And then three more. You're never going to make it through._

Kenma wasn't sure how he was going to make it through the lecture. He peaked at his backpack. 

_You can't just run out during you very first class, you idiot._

He tried taking deep breaths and counted to ten several times. His professor pointed at a slide about prehistoric art. He knew this stuff. He could do this.

The lecture lasted two hours and had it been a single second more Kenma would've probably stormed out of the classroom. Everyone was getting up and moving towards the door in one big wave of limbs and intrusive perfume. They were probably going to get lunch now. It was going to be even busier. It was going to be this busy for the rest of the day. Kenma slowly got swallowed by the sea of people and he knew he couldn't do this much longer.

And that's how he ended up locking himself in a bathroom stall before lunch time was over.

 

**************

 

At least five minutes had passed and Kenma still hadn't heard back from Kuroo. He tried calling him himself but it went straight to voicemail. His breath got stuck in his throat. He needed to get out of here. If he could just go to his dorm he could grab his stuff and be on the next train the fuck out of here. 

He listened to the sound of water running from the tap as someone was apparently washing their hands and waited for them to leave. He took a shaky breath and got up from the toilet seat. His stupid bag was heavy from all his stupid textbooks as he slung it over his shoulder. He made another attempt at a deep breath and left the stall. 

The first thing he noticed was a water bottle covered in volleyball stickers standing on the edge of the sink. It hadn't been there when he got in. Maybe someone forgot? Kenma rushed to the exit hoping he wouldn't run into anyone when the door opened with a large swing. 

Shit.

An unidentified orange object flew into the bathroom and right into Kenma. Had he been just one step closer to the door he would have probably fallen over but he managed to steady himself just in time.

“Oh my God,” the orange projectile said. “Are you okay?”

It was a loaded question. Kenma tried to keep his face to the ground as he was sure his eyes were red and would reveal that he had been crying, but the other boy was shorter than him and turned his neck in an attempt to make eye contact.

“Oh no!” he said and Kenma tried to turn his face away. “Did I hurt you?”

His eyes were wide and brown and he seemed genuinely worried. Kenma really didn't need this right now.

“I'm fine,” he said, but it proved nearly impossible to say those words without getting emotional. A new set of tears welled up behind his eyes and Kenma really didn't want to have another nervous breakdown. Especially in front of a stranger. He pushes past the boy and made his way out of the bathroom and into the corridor.

“No!” he heard the other boy scream as he left. “Don't run away!” but Kenma ignored him.

He pulled the hood of his sweater far over his face and folded his arms as he sped his way through the crowded hall. He hated all these people around. He hated how the brushed up against him as they walked past. And he hated the noise and the whole fucking school and himself. 

It was ironic that this had been his 'safety school', because he didn't feel safe at all. 

He just needed to get out, he thought to himself as he walked out the door and headed across the large field to get to his dorm. 

And that's when Kuroo finally called back.


	2. The Roommate Conundrum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tadaaaaaa! New chapter! 
> 
> It took me a little longer than expected to write this, but I think I sort of figured out where I'm taking this story, so that's good. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy :))

“Are you okay?” Kuroo's voice sounded worried, but also just so far away.

“I can't do it,” Kenma could no longer hold back the tears and sat down behind a tree where he figured nobody could see him cry.

“Where are you right now?” Kuroo asked. 

“I don't know,” Kenma's hands were trembling. “Behind some stupid tree on some stupid field. Everything is falling apart.” 

“Okay, listen to me,” Kuroo's voiced switched to a more determined tone. “Deep breaths, okay? Are you on your lunch break?” 

“Yes.” Kenma sobbed and couldn't manage to say more. He wanted to say more. Like how he wanted to quit and how he couldn't imagine getting back into that building.

“Just go for a little walk okay?” Kuroo said. “It'll make you feel better I promise.” 

“I don't wanna hang up,” Kenma felt like a little kid begging to stay over at his friends house for just five more minutes. Like he was having a tantrum. 

“I'm not hanging up, I promise,” Kuroo said. “Just get up and take a little walk around campus.” 

“Will you talk to me for a bit,” Kenma said as he made zero effort to actually get up. 

“Of course,” It was so nice to just hear his friends voice. “But you know I can tell that you're not walking, right?”

“Umm...” 

“Please just do it, Kenma” Kuroo said. “For me?” 

“You're awful,” Kenma said and he wiped some tears from his face as he pushed himself up. He looked around and saw all the students head to what he assumed was the dining hall. He headed in the opposite direction. 

“I know I am,” Kuroo said. “But lets talk. I just finished my first maths lecture and I can already tell that this class is gonna be the death of me.” 

Kenma laughed a little. “I just had art history,” he said softly. 

“How was that? You like art history, right?” 

“Yeah...” Kenma let his voice trail off because he didn't really want to talk about how hard it had been for him. He was finally no longer crying audibly, but he could still feel a black hole about the size of a fist in his stomach sucking out all the energy in his body. 

“Was it the anxiety?” Kuroo asked.

“I just don't think I can do it,” Kenma said. He kept his face down as he walked past the field in the direction of his dorm. “I really want to go home.” 

For a moment Kenma was worried that Kuroo was going to hit him with a motivational speech like his mother had.

“Are you still walking?” Kuroo asked instead. 

“Hmmm,” Kenma said as he just turned around the corner of the library.

“Good, keep doing that.” Kenma wasn't sure why his friend was so set on this, but to be honest, just walking for the past two minutes already made his body feel better. “Do you have any other classes this afternoon?” 

“No,” Kenma said. “But I have two tomorrow and-” 

“Then just take it easy, all right?” Kuroo cut him off, but his voice was so sweet that Kenma couldn't really blame him. “You love art, try to remember that for tomorrow, but for now just enjoy the sunshine and listen to my stories about my awful maths professor who is definitely out to get me.” 

Kuroo started a long and very dramatic story of his teacher who called on him three times in a single lecture and managed to point out the tiniest mistake every single time. He talked about moving in with Bokuto and Akaashi for the new school year and how Akaashi had only threatened to kill them three times so far. Kenma slowly started to feel like himself again, making salty comments every so often and laughing about his stupid stories always revolving around one of Bokuto's plans. They talked for almost an hour and by that time Kenma's face felt normal again and he could breathe all the way down.

“Thank you for this,” Kenma said as he was getting pretty tired of walking. “It really means a lot.”

“It's okay,” Kuroo said. “Anything for you.” 

“You're a sap,” 

“I know,” Kenma could hear Kuroo smile through the phone. “I'm gonna come over this friday and we can hang out and do homework together all weekend, okay?” 

“That would be good,” Kenma said as he reached his building. He stopped right by the door and leaned against the wall as he finished his call.

“So you promise you'll try and stick it out until Friday?” 

“Promise.” 

“Good,” Kuroo said. “I'll see you then,” 

“See you then,” 

“Oh and Kenma?” 

“Hmmm?”

“Try to make some friends.” 

 

****************

 

As Kenma put his hands around the doorknob noticed that his room wasn't locked. He thought back to earlier that morning, but clearly remembered locking it so when he stepped inside he wasn't too surprised to find his roommate.

The boy was making his bed and his suitcases were scattered around the room in several stages of unpacked. He flinched as Kenma closed the door behind him and turned around to face him. He had freckles all over his face and arms and long brown hair tied in a messy ponytail. It almost made Kenma a little envious that he had trimmed his own hair back to shoulder length when it had gotten in the way too much. 

“Eh... Hi... Hi there,” his room mate stuttered, not making eye contact and his face getting red. “I erm... Hope you don't mind me unpacking my bags,” 

“Of course not, go ahead” Kenma said as he kicked off his shoes and walked further into the room. He didn't feel like talking much, but he was kind of glad to see his room mate anyway. He probably wouldn't have recognised the kid in passing since he had only seen him once and that could've led to some pretty awkward situations. _If only he could remember his name._

The boy gave him a sheepish smile a turned around again to put his bedding onto the duvet. It was a pastel blue and he felt like it suited the kid. Not that he knew him really, but the shirt he was wearing was a soft yellow, so he assumed he was going for a theme there. 

Kenma sat down on his bed and placed his backpack in front of him to reach for his DS. He had gotten some homework today already, but he had a whole week to get that sorted. Plus he felt a bit awkward in front of his room mate and playing games made him feel more inside his comfort zone. The other boy didn't seem sure what to say either and significantly sped up his unpacking. Probably hoping to leave quickly again. Kenma figured that the boy probably came to settle in during his lunch break in the hopes of not running into him. He considered leaving but that would probably be a bit awkward too. He also had a lot of questions for the kid. Where he had been sleeping for the past two nights? And why did he even make such an effort to avoid him? Had he made a bad first impression? Or was the boy just as shy as he was?

Kenma asked neither of these questions and settled for something else entirely. 

“Does it hurt to pierce your ears like that?” he asked. He usually never initiated a conversation, but the boy seemed nice enough and if Kenma could survive the horror of his two hour lecture then surely he could ask his roommate a simple question. 

“What?” The boy turned around and looked confused. 

Kenma immediately regretted his decision. _Now he thinks you were staring at him, you idiot!_ “Erm.. Your ears,” Kenma started again. “Did it hurt to pierce them?” 

The boy reached for the top of his ear where he had a tiny silver ring. Almost as if he had forgotten that it was there. “Not really...” he said. “It was over quick.” 

“Okay.” Kenma wasn't sure how to continue a conversation from here and felt stupid enough for even asking such a weird question. He turned to his game and tried to forget the entire thing had even happened. 

The boy turned to his suitcase and started putting his clothes in his dresser. Kenma peeked over the edge of his DS and saw that most of his shirts were in pastel colours, but he also owned a lot of black. It took him only about two minutes to finish this task after which he excused himself and quickly made his way out of the room.

Definitely shy, Kenma thought, but who was he to judge? It would probably take a while for the two of them to get to know each other. Especially if the other boy was never there, but also because Kenma had no idea how to go about it. Would it be stupid if he had to ask for the other boy's name again? Probably, right? And would they sit together if they ran into one another at the dining hall? And when exactly do you tell your new roommate that you're gay? Were there some sort of guidelines for that? 

Kenma sighed softly and focussed on his game again. He'd worry about that later. He just needed to recharge now.

 

*****************

It was slowly getting dark outside and Kenma was getting anxious again. He felt claustrophobic and cooped up, a feeling he'd never had when he spent the entire day in his bedroom at home. He was stressing about his classes tomorrow and how he had twice as many as he did today. One of them was a drawing class and he tried to remind himself of his excitement like Kuroo had recommended, but he wasn't really pulling it off. He looked over his desk, out the window at the pavement lit by street lights and the moon. 

It all looked so peaceful. 

Kenma quickly grabbed his shoes and decided in a split second that he was going go for another walk. If Kuroo was right then it would be good for him.

Kenma left his dorm and made his way down the hallway. He lived on the ground floor and only about six or seven rooms away from the entrance. As he almost reached the exit he could swear he heard his room mates voice from behind one of the doors. That was a mystery he would unravel later. Not now.

The cold air felt good on Kenma's face. It was a bit chilly, but not chilly enough for him to bother walking all the way back to get a jacket. He turned left because that's where he could see the most lights and he figured he could maybe get a coffee and a snack somewhere. He had eaten those two packets of ramen that his mom had left for him, but they weren't really enough and he was still hungry. 

He let his thoughts wander a bit as the soft breeze picked up strands of his hair. As much as he tried not to let it happen, his thoughts wandered to his classes tomorrow. One of them was English, which he could probably manage, but the other was one of his art classes. Figure drawing. Kenma couldn't help but freak out a little. What if everyone else was really good? What if he was the only person who still couldn't draw hands?

He took a deep breath. Just keep walking. He considered calling Kuroo again, but it was still quite busy out on the streets. What if he started crying again? He'd make a complete fool out of himself in front of a lot of people. There were other students passing him left and right, hurrying to meet up with their friends and quite a few people speeding by for an evening jog. 

One of those joggers was quickly approaching and Kenma frowned. Even in this dim light he could recognise that bright orange hair. 

He was wearing black shorts and a white t-shirt and ran so fast that Kenma couldn't change direction without looking like a complete asshole.

Kenma could only hope that the boy wouldn't recognise him, but right a they passed each other, the other kid suddenly stopped.

“Oh my god!” The boy screamed. “You're the kid from the bathroom!” 

Kenma figured there was no escaping now.

“I never got to apologize to you!” the boy continued in an unnecessarily loud voice.

“I'm pretty sure you did,” Kenma pointed out. He wanted to say something about inside voices, but as they were currently outside that didn't seem appropriate. “Also, it's not a big deal.” 

“But you were crying!” 

Thanks for pointing that out, you idiot. Kenma thought. He had hoped the other boy didn't notice or at least had the curtsey to not bring it up. Especially not while they were standing in the middle of the freaking road.

“I wasn't,” Kenma tried to defend himself. 

“You were!” 

“Were not”

The other boy frowned. “It's okay if you were,” he said, his voice suddenly softer.

Kenma swallowed hard. “I just had a bit of a rough day,” he explained and he quickly averted his eyes.

“Are you better now?” the boy asked and he took one step closer and Kenma tried really hard not to make eye contact. He could feel the boys breath against his neck.

“I think so,” Kenma said. 

“Do you need a hug?” the boy tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. “Cause you look like you could use a hug.” 

What? Where did that come from? Was this normal college behaviour?

“But you... you're all sweaty,” was all that Kenma managed to blurt out. 

“Ah come on, give me a break,” the boy said. “Just let me make it up to you!

He reached out his arms and before Kenma was completely aware of what was happening he was caught in an embrace. It was warm and clingy, but nice. The boy wasn't even that sweaty and his hair was soft against Kenma's neck. Maybe he did need a hug.

“I don't know your name,” Kenma said as he suddenly realised that he was in fact hugging a stranger out on the curb.

“I'm Hinata Shouyou,” the boy said without letting go. He was surprisingly good at hugging. 

“Kenma,” 

“Nice to meet you, just Kenma,” Hinata said as he pulled back his arms at last. He had a big smirk on his face.

Kenma was sure he should say something, but he was pretty caught of guard by the whole situation so he just stared at Hinata's smile, which was big and bright. “I erm...” he tried, but he couldn't figure out what would be appropriate to say in such situation.

Hinata giggled behind his hand. “I'll see you around, Kenma,” he said and he took off again, dissapearing so quickly that Kenma might as well have dreamt the whole thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I settled on Yamaguchi as a roommate because I think they could be such nice friends. You know, once they get over their shyness and actually talk :)
> 
> If you have any feedback that would be great and comments and kudos are always really lovely
> 
> (you can also yell about Haikyuu with me on my tumblr look-at-me-im-special.tumblr.com)


	3. Abort Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter was alternatively titled: "for the love of god, please keep on your fucking pants"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this is so short! There was supposed to be another scene in this chapter but I haven't gotten around to writing it yet. I realy wanted to update anyway, since I'm going on a school trip until sunday and won't be able to write until then. 
> 
> So I hope you enjoy this tiny chapter until next week. 
> 
> XXXX

Kenma twisted his charcoal pencil between his fingers and carefully studied the black marks it left on his fingers. He tried to look busy. The classroom was filling up quickly and all the other students had found someone to talk to. To share stories with about all the crazy things they did last night. Kenma had spent last night covered under his blankets telling himself that maybe college kids just hugged strangers while going for walks.

Kenma shifted his weight, unsure how to stand. The room didn't have any seats, only easels in a circle around an empty table. This left Kenma standing in a corner occasionally peeking over at the teacher and trying to mind-control him into just fucking starting this class already. It should have started five minutes ago, judging from his watch. Were they waiting for something?

The door slammed shut with a loud bang and Kenma's eyes were immediately drawn to the person barging in.

_Oh for fucks sake._

Hinata made his way to the teachers desk in the far end of the room. His face was all red and he seemed out of breath. “I'm sorry! I'm sorry!” he said as he frantically waved his arms. “I overslept and-” 

“Let's just get started,” the teacher said as he got up from his desk chair and pointed Hinata in the direction of the table in the centre of the room.

Why was his teacher already waiting for Hinata? How did they know each other, this was only their first class? Unless.

_Oh for fucks sake._

_He was going to be the model wasn't he?_

Kenma took a step back and tried to hide behind his easel. Hell, if he could completely vanish into it he would sign up without question. Why did the universe do this to him? He was already bad enough at making friends if he wasn't forced to stare at them for a two hour drawing class. Maybe if he played his cards right, Hinata would never notice him and they could just-

_Wait._

_No. No. Why was he taking off his shirt? No. Abort. Abort._

The teacher walked to the centre of the room to explain their assignment for the upcoming class and Kenma was trying really hard to focus but all he could think was 'For the love of god, please keep on your fucking pants'. 

He kept his pants on. 

The teacher went to hand him a large white sheet that he draped over one of Hinata's shoulders as he sat down on the table leaning back on one arm. His back was facing Kenma, but if he turned his head slightly he would make direct eye contact with Kenma. Thank god Hinata was supposed to sit still. 

“I'll give you about twenty minutes for your first sketch,” the teacher said as he headed back to his desk, where he had a newspaper waiting for him. 

Kenma took a deep breath and brought his piece of charcoal to the paper. He started with the line of Hinata's arm, reaching all the way to his shoulder and curving into his neck. There was a tension in the pose that he tried to mimic by pressing hard into the paper. 

It was easy to forget everything that was going on around him. Even Hinata. He became light and darkness and the contrast was for Kenma to capture. The way the sun hit his hair, or the shadow on his back. Kenma entered a state of flow that he hadn't experienced since he got here. He wrapped his left hand around the back of his easel and stepped so close to his drawing he could almost touch it with his nose and-

“Twenty minutes are up!” 

Kenma was caught of guard. That was twenty minutes already? He wasn't even half finished with his piece. He looked around to take a peek at the other students' drawings but he could only see the piece of the girl in front of him because of the way their easels were positioned. She was way farther than he was, she even found the time to add in some of the background. Kenma stared back at his own piece and frowned.

“For the next round you'll only have ten minutes, so focus on the most important things first,” his teacher continued before turning to Hinata. “If you could switch up your pose please,” 

Hinata pushed himself up completely before turning around. He crossed his legs and folded his hands in his lap. Kenma tried to hide behind his easel, but it was too late. Hinata caught his stare and when he recognised Kenma his eyes got wider. 

Kenma could feel his cheeks turn pink.

Hinata quickly traded in his surprise for a big smile. Kenma didn't know how to respond. All the other students around him started drawing. He should really get started himself. He only had ten minutes. He tore his eyes away from Hinata and picked up his charcoal. 

He really didn't want to make eye contact but he had to actually look at Hinata to be able to draw him. It was a lot more difficult to get into it this time around as he struggled to even get a single mark on the paper. 

He looked back at Hinata a tried once again to see him as a collection of rays of light instead of a human being. That would have been easier if said human being wasn't still grinning at him and if said human being didn't have freaking abs. 

_Don't stare at his abs._

How else are you gonna draw him if you aren't gonna look at him. 

Right as Kenma finished a rough outline of his sketch, his time was up. Hinata turned ninety degrees and no longer looked back at Kenma making it surprisingly easy for him to draw his third piece. Despite only having five minutes this time. 

He spent the next hour and a half making sketches in an ever shrinking time frame. He felt he did pretty well. His pieces came to life more and more as the class progressed, if you ignored the ones where Hinata was facing him, which were all a complete mess. 

As the teacher called off the last session Kenma quickly tore the piece of paper from the easel and put it in his large drawing folder along with the others. He grabbed his bag and completely intended to make a run for it when Hinata popped up from behind him.

Still not wearing a shirt. 

“Can I see those drawings?” he asked with a daring grin on his face. 

“Erm... I- I don't know,” Kenma said as he pulled his bag closer to his body. “it's a bit weird isn't it?” 

Hinata tilted his head. “I'm sure they're really good.” he insisted. 

Kenma didn't know what to say. He wondered if he would have been okay sharing his work with Hinata if it hadn't been sketches of him. He didn't really like showing other people his stuff regardless of the topic, but part of him really wanted a compliment. Especially from Hinata.

“How about it trade you lunch for it?” Hinata said. “I get you food and you show me your drawings.” 

Kenma frowned. _Lunch huh?_ He thought of the significant lack of food in his bag and the possibility of having lunch with Hinata. With just the two of them.

“Sounds like a plan,” he said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for nothing.
> 
>  
> 
> So I have this weird habit of embracing my easel whenever I use one to draw and everyone thinks it's really silly so I put it in here.
> 
> I hope you liked it :)))))))
> 
> (You can yell at me about these idiots on my tumblr: look-at-me-im-special.tumblr.com)


	5. Very Platonic Lunch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this took so long, but school has been really busy and also tumblr is very distracting.
> 
> This also isn't all that long because it's technically the second half of the previous chapter. It just felt like an appropriate time to end this and also I need sleep. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

Kenma carried his folder with his drawings in his right hand and a giant ball of nerves in his left. Hinata was walking next to him, talking brightly about this restaurant he discovered yesterday, as they headed toward the foodcourt. Kenma's brain was buzzing.

Had this situation taken place a couple years ago, Kenma's thoughts would have been very different. 

_Why is your heart beating so fast?_

He would have thought.

_It's probably your anxiety again._

_Why are you so nervous around this guy?_

He would have thought.

_You must really admire them as a person._

_Yeah, that's it._

But he was eighteen now and he'd gotten better at recognising his own emotions. Even if only slightly. That's why his thoughts right now were a lot more like this. 

_Oh God, he's really adorable._

_The way he bounces a little when he walks and how he talks with his hands so much._

_How do I find out if he's even into guys._

_Hell, even if he is, why would he bother liking me?_

_Although technically we are going out for lunch together._

_But is it platonic lunch?_

Kenma liked to think he had grown significantly as a person. 

They made a final left turn after the library and were suddenly surrounded by people all headed to get food. Kenma took a deep breath, almost as if to brace himself for the situation and Hinata stopped talking.

“Are you okay?” he asked as he slowed down his pace and turned his shoulders toward Kenma.

Kenma quickly nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “Just not a big fan of crowds that's all.” His voice was almost completely drowned out by the other people on the food court. 

“Oh, I didn't know that,” Hinata said matter of factly. “Are you okay getting lunch here, though?”

“Yes definitely,” Kenma said and he quickly put on a smile to show that he was indeed excited to be here. Maybe they could just find some place quiet.

“Great,” Hinata turned to look around the court and suddenly broke a smile. “Ah! I can see my friends, lets go!” 

_Wait a second. Friends?_

Before Kenma could ask anything, Hinata picked up his pace and made his way toward some picnic tables outside a small restaurant. 

_Of course they were going to have lunch with Hinata's friends. What was he thinking._

Kenma quickly followed suit and tried to keep that smile on his face for future reference. The table they were headed towards was on the side of a terrace and in the shade of some nearby trees. 

“Hey guys!” Hinata said excitedly as he plopped down on the edge of one of the benches. “I brought someone along, I hope that's okay?” Hinata made a big gesture towards Kenma, who approached the table slowly trying to measure up the situation. 

Five of Hinata's friends were already seated. They had been talking quite loudly. They all already knew each other. Kenma scanned the table, which was full of bright people, until he made eye contact with his roommate. 

Oh shit. 

He was one of Hinata's friends? 

“Hi, I'm Kenma,” he waved and he dropped his drawing folder on the ground and sat down across from Hinata. His friends already had plates of food and he noticed he was quite hungry himself. Hinata, however, seemed to be set on making some friendly conversation before going to get lunch. 

“I'm Yachi Hitoka, nice to meet you,” a blonde girl who was sitting next to him said as she smiled politely. “And that's Nishinoya and Tanaka,” She pointed at two boys on the other end of the table who were completely invested in an arm wrestling contest. One of them had a buzzcut and a piercing through his left eyebrow. The other seemed significantly shorter, but he made up for that slightly with big, spiky hair.

“Nice to meet you,” the smaller one said, but right as he did so the other one got the upper hand and slammed his arm down onto the table. 

“I'm the king of the world!” he chanted with both fists into the air.

“No fair!,” the other said. “I was distracted.”

A tall guy with glasses on the other side of the table looked up from his phone and rolled his eyes at his other friends. “Tsukishima,” he said without the faintest hint of interest. Right next to him was his roommate. _Please introduce yourself again. Please introduce yourself again_ , Kenma thought. 

“Well, we already know each other,” his roommate said and his cheeks turned slightly pink.

Shit.

Hinata looked up. “You do?” he said. “What from?” 

“We're roommates,” Kenma said softly. 

“Really?,” Hinata's eyes lit up. “That's so exciting, I can't believe you guys are already friends! Isn't that such a coincidence?” he turned to Yachi who agreed with him that this was all indeed very coincidental and not a huge, freaking trainwreck like Kenma thought it was.

He shot his roommate a glance. The boy smiled empathetically and then rolled his eyes at Hinata. That made Kenma feel a little better. He and his roommate at least had the mutual understanding that they were both really bad at socializing. 

The rest of Hinata's friends seemed pretty nice too.

“So where did you and Shouyou meet?” Yachi asked and she turned to Kenma. 

“We- We met at my figure drawing class earlier this morning,” Kenma wasn't quite sure how to explain the rest of the situation. “But we've seen eachother around campus a few times now.” 

“Ah, that's right,” Tanaka said. “How was the modelling gig, buddy?” 

“Horrible!” Hinata ran his hands through his hair. “Nobody told me I had to sit still for two whole hours!” 

Kenma giggled behind his hand and the laughter made him feel comfortable abough to keep talking. “What did you expect?” he asked. 

“I dunno!” Hinata said. “I just knew they would give me fifty bucks!”

“So that's it for your modelling career then?” Nishinoya joked.

“Yeah,” Hinata nodded in disapointment, but then he turned to Kenma “The only advantage is that mister artist here will let me see his drawings if I get him lunch.” 

“I still don't have any lunch, though,” Kenma blurted out and he immediately regretted saying something so rude. With his highschool friends this would have been completely acceptable. He wished they were here.

Hinata's friends all started laughing, however, and even the scary looking glasses kid smirked a little.

To his relief Hinata also smiled. “Lets go and fix that then,” he said as he got up. 

Kenma followed him as they made their way into the restaurant. Well, it wasn't really a restaurant. More like a café that happened to sell some food as well. It was small and cozy and filled with students who were doing their homework while enjoying their coffee. Hinata led the way to the counter where several sandwiches were on display. Kenma could hear his stomach rumble as he pressed his face to the glass. 

“Ooh, I want that one,” he said as he ogled a sandwich with omelette and bacon and when he looked back up Hinata was already reaching for his wallet.

“I'll have two of those please,” he said to the man behind the counter. 

“You're actually paying?” Kenma said and he frowned. “I thought it was a joke.” 

Hinata laughed. “You're cute,” he said with a grin. “But I'm pretty set on seeing those drawings.” 

Kenma could feel his face flush. This was all in reference to showing Hinata his drawings of course. It had nothing to do with the compliment. _Was it even a compliment?_ “Yeah, about that,” he said. “Is it okay if I maybe not show those in front of all of your friends? It's a bit weird.” 

“Yeah sure,” Hinata smiled and turned around to pay for their lunches. “Don't worry about it though, if you don't want to show them that's okay too.” 

Kenma felt a little better already. “I have another question,” he said quickly, before he would lose the courage to ask. “But it's really, really embarrassing.” 

Hinata's eyes lit up. “Yes?” 

“What's my roommate's name?” 

Hinata looked at him in confusion for a brief moment and then started laughing like a madman. “You- you're his roommate,” he said while gasping for air. “And you don't even know his name?” 

“Well it's not like he's ever in our room!”Kenma tried to defend himself. “I've only spoken to him maybe once and I'm not good with names.” 

Hinata started to calm down a little, but his face was still red from all the laughing. “His name is Yamaguchi,” he said and he started to snicker again. “Yamaguchi Tadashi. I can't believe you didn't even know his name!” 

“That's why I asked you,” Kenma said. “If I had to ask him he would probably hate me even more.” 

Hinata's face turned serious all of the sudden and he frowned. “Why do you think he hates you?” 

“Well for starters, he hasn't even slept in our room yet,” Kenma began. “And whenever I do see him he always leaves as soon as possible.” 

“I'm pretty sure he doesn't hate you,” Hinata said and he took one step closer to the door to signal that it was about time they went back outside. “He's just- I'm sure he'll explain everything to you eventually.” 

That didn't make sense at all, but Kenma didn't ask any further as they walked back to their table. From a distance, he could already see Nishinoya and Tanaka were involved in a re-match that involved a lot more shouting than the last one. By the time they made it to the table Nishinoya had taken back his title. They whole situation reminded him so much of his highschool friends that he felt a little more like home. 

He said down and looked at Yamaguchi to try and connect his face to his name to make sure he would never, ever forget it ever again. Yamaguchi noticed him staring, however, and immediately scooted away from Tsukishima sitting next to him and dug his face into his backpack to search for something. 

Maybe he was really just shy, Kenma thought. That wasn't the burning red face of someone who hated other people for no reason. 

Kenma ate his lunch pretty quietly as he listened to Hinata and his friends talking. He learned that Yamaguchi and Tsukishima had gone to the same highschool, and so did Tanaka and Nishinoya. Hinata and Yachi had even met in middle school and been friends ever since. They had all met at one of the parties during their first weekend here and had met up for lunch every day after that. It was strange to Kenma that they had all managed to become friends so quickly, but also kind of comforting. They must all be very friendly people. 

“So Hinata,” Tanaka said right as Kenma was taking the last bite of his sandwich. “You coming to practice with us for a bit?” 

“I mean, I'd love to,” Hinata said and he sighed. “But I'm already miserably failing to understand my art history, so I'm gonna have to talk to my teacher to ask some questions.” 

“You take art history?” Kenma asked and he tried really hard not to sound surprised.

“I do, actually,” Hinata said and he tilted his head. “Is it really that weird?” 

“It is,” Tsukishima pointed out without bothering to make look up. “You're about as cultured as your volleyball kneepads.” 

“I am not!” Hinata said. “I'll have you know I am very cultured.” 

“You literally just said you didn't understand your coursework.” 

Hinata crossed his arms like a little kid. “Well at least I'm trying.” he said and then he completed his childish routine by poking out his tongue at Tsukishima.

“I could maybe help you,” Kenma said softly.

Hinata turned to him “You would?” 

“I mean,” Kenma fumbled with his napkin to avoid making eye contact. “I already went over the topic in highschool, so I could explain it to you.” 

“That would be so awesome! Hinata nearly bounced up and down in his seat. “We should exchange numbers so we can set something up!” 

Before Kenma knew it Hinata had whipped out his phone and pushed it into Kenma's hands. “Ah! Now I can go play volleyball with you guys!” Hinata cheered as he reached for his bag and pulled out a volleyball that he had apparently been carrying with him the entire time.

Kenma quickly typed his number into Hinata's phone with slighlty shaky hands and by the time he gave it back Hinata was already up and ready to go. 

“I'll see you around then,” he said with a smile before he took off with his friends, leaving Kenma to quickly pack his things and head back to his dorm. 

 

13:11 Hinata  
o(^▽^)o

13:12 Hinata  
Would this thursday work for you?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like Kenma is very out of character in a lot of this. That is not at all because I'm projecting my own emotions on a fictional character. Not at all. What are you talking about? *cough cough*
> 
> (Also, as you can tell I'm just fucking around with everyone's age to make it so they're all freshmen in college. Sue me)
> 
> Thank you all for reading so far and for leaving the sweetest comments, it means a lot!
> 
> (You can yell at me on tumblr in you want look-at-me-im-special.tumblr.com)


	6. To Prove Them Wrong

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got a decent length chapter up! This was so much fun to write, especially because I got to throw in a bunch of art history facts and I'm always a sucker for that :)
> 
> I hope you enjoy!
> 
> EDIT: Oh god. I just realized I've been spelling Tsukishima's name wrong all this time. It's only one k. I will fix this as soon as I've got time!

A universal rule of life is that you don't call people before ten O'clock. At least Kenma thinks it should be. He groaned at the ceiling and peeked over from behind his wall of blankets to see Kuroo's name light up on his phone screen. He sighed.

“What the hell, Kuro?” 

“Kenma!, how have you been!” Kuroo sounded more excited than anyone should be at this time of day. Rays of sunlight pierced their way past Kenma's curtains and right onto his pillow. He decided to keep his eyes closed.

“It's fucking eight AM,” Kenma said. “I don't have class until eleven.”

“Did I wake you up?” he could could practically hear Kuroo grin through the phone. “My bad.”

“Why are you calling?” Kenma moaned.

“I just wanted to hear your lovely voice,” Kenma rolled his eyes and then quickly closed them again. “Also wanted to check up and make sure you've been doing okay.” 

He had been doing okay. His classes were still overwhelming, but he hadn't thought about quitting in at least twenty four hours. After making it through his first three days only crying once he thought that maybe –maybe– he could make this work. Yesterday he even had lunch with Hinata and his friends again and tonight. Kenma sat up straight. He could feel his stomach turn. Better not think about that just yet.

“I've been doing good,” Kenma said.

“Never a man of many words,” Kuroo said. “How have your classes been?” 

“Fine,” Kenma pulled his blanket up over his head because the light was too bright and he wasn't ready to start his day yet. “Haven't done much, though, since it's all mostly introductions.” 

“That makes sense,” Kuroo said. “Are we still up for tomorrow?” 

“Definitely,” Kenma let the tension drop from his shoulders. He hadn't gotten much homework yet and he could really use a weekend of doing absolutely nothing with Kuroo. “But did you really have to call me this early to make sure?”

“Oh, absolutely,” Kuroo said. “Nothing brings me more joy than ruining your morning. Now go have breakfast.” 

“Asshole,” was the last thing Kenma said before he hung up. He remained under his blanket cave for a few more minutes –or maybe half an hour– cherishing the drowsiness that made it impossible for him to stress about anything. 

He stayed in this blissful state of ignorance until he heard a key turn in the lock. He pulled the blanket off of himself just in time to see Yamaguchi sneak into the room.

He carefully closed the door behind him and when he turned around and found his roommate to be awake his face turned red.

“Oh, I'm so sorry!” Yamaguchi said. “I thought you'd still be sleeping.” 

“You're sneaking into your own room right now,” Kenma said. A little more brave than usual. He blamed in on the lack of sleep and thus it was all Kuroo's fault. “You know that right?” 

“Yes?” Yamaguchi smiled at his shoes. “I'm really sorry. I'm just- just really shy and worried about this whole roommate thing and I- I don't want you to think that I hate you or anything. It's just-” 

“Do you think that I hate you?” Kenma asked. 

“No, but it's-”

“Because I don't hate you.” 

Yamaguchi looked up from the ground and gave Kenma a quick smile. “I'm just really scared that you might hate _me_.” 

Kenma frowned. “Are you a serial killer?” 

Yamaguchi frowned and tilted his head a bit. “Obviously not.” 

“Then I think you'll do just fine,” Kenma said. 

“You don't understand,” Yamaguchi started, but the rest of his sentence seemed to get stuck in his throat. “I- I'm just gonna grab some clothes and then I'm out of your way.”

Kenma watched as his roommate pulled a sweater out of a drawer and quickly made his way back to the door. He hesitated a little before closing it. “I'm sorry,” he said.

Kenma was left alone and entirely confused. “Where do you even sleep?” Kenma whisper-yelled at the empty side of the room. He wasn't even entirely sure that the kid wasn't sleeping outside on some bench. He sure seemed anxious enough to do it if it meant he could avoid any confrontation. Maybe he could ask Hinata about it some more when they would meet up tonight. Tonight. 

_Shit._

Kenma covered his face under the blankets again and tried to will himself back to sleep. 

Mornings should never be this eventful. 

 

***********************

 

Kenma had decided he was not going to make a big deal out of this. Totally not a big deal. He had just finished his mandatory English class and his education was his first priority. Definitely. That's what he went to college for. Education. Yes.

Besides. Hinata probably wasn't even into guys.

A couple of deep breaths passed and Kenma stepped through the doors of the library. He hadn't been here before, but the smell of books hit him like a nostalgic memory. He walked closer to the check out area, but not so close that the receptionist would ask him anything. He had agreed to meet Hinata in the library. Nothing more specific than that. Just in the library. It freaked him out a little to not know where they would meet. Okay. It freaked him out a lot. He had shown up almost thirty minutes early, just to make sure everything would work out all right. This did mean, however, that he had to spend half an hour waiting around in this godforsaken library. 

He had seen the library at Kuroo's university several times and it was the epitome of scholarly goodness. A three story tall architectural masterpiece with an extensive collection of really old art books and cosy chairs and...

It was absolutely nothing like this. From the bright, white led-lights to the metal chairs and the linoleum floors, the whole building felt cold. 

Kenma took a deep breath. It smelled of books and, like all libraries, it was quiet and peaceful. It's wasn't all that bad. Maybe he should come he more often. 

He took his phone from his pocket to check the time. 17:10. Twenty more minutes.

“Make sure you're phone is on silent please,” 

Kenma looked up at the man behind the reception, who smiled at him and then pointed at a sign on the wall that probably had the rules written on it. Kenma couldn't see it from here. He turned his phone to silent and put it in his backpack. 

“Oh you're early too!” Hinata's voice blasted through the library like he wasn't in a library.

“Shhhhhhhh!” The receptionist cut him off.

“Sorry, sorry!” Hinata said in an attempt to whisper that was still loud for library standards. He then turned back to Kenma and smiled the brightest smile. “Good to see you!” 

“It's good to see you too,” Kenma said, but his voice came out a lot softer than expected. 

_What do I say now. What do we do? Do we just go now?_

“So you wanna get started?” Hinata said as he walked past him toward a table in the corner of the library.

Kenma quickly followed him and they both dumped their bags onto the table. Kenma got out his notes, he hadn't even bothered to bring his book since it was at least five pounds and he wasn't going through all that trouble twice in one week.

“So what exactly is it that you're having trouble with,” Kenma asked as Hinata, who had brought his art history book, struggled to get it out of his bag.

“Well, our teacher spent all this time talking about this one painting,” Hinata said. “And I just didn't get it.” 

“The Monk by the Sea?” Kenma asked and he reached for the book to turn it to a page featuring a picture of the painting. 

Hinata nodded and turned his eyes to the page. The painting showed a sight of the ocean, but mostly the tumultuous sky above it with only a teeny, tiny silhouette in the distance. Kenma thought it was beautiful. 

“Why is he so tiny!” Hinata said. “If he wanted to paint a monk why didn't he just zoom in a bit!”

Kenma smiled. “I think this painting is all about the emptiness,” he said. “About the infinity.” 

“What do you mean?”

“This piece was painted during the Romantic Era, so-”

“Yeah, I don't get that either,” Hinata interrupted. “Like, what's so romantic about standing on the beach all by yourself? That sounds like a pretty shitty date to me.” 

This time Kenma laughed out loud. “No, no. It's just called the Romantic Era, it's not actually supposed to be romantic.” he said. “But the era itself is very important.” 

“How is that?”

“It was the first time artist started making art for the sake of making art,” Kenma started. He felt a lot more comfortable already. He was usually very quiet, but once you got him started on his favourite topics, he could talk forever. “During the renaissance people made art for the church or for royalty or noblemen, but when religion started to become less and less important people started to make painting about all sorts of things.” 

“But this painting is of a monk,” Hinata said. “So it's still about religion, isn't it?” 

“Yes, but that's what makes this piece so interesting,” Kenma said and he could feel himself get excited just talking about it. “This is a monk, during a time where religious influences were slowly fading away. He is staring into the distance and he is so small and there is so much emptiness and loneliness even. It's not literally about a monk by the sea. It's about a void I think, and about trying to fill that void.” 

By the time he was done Hinata was staring at him with wide eyes. “You're really good at explaining these things, Kenma.” 

“I'm glad you think so,” Kenma averted his eyes. “But this is just one painting and we have to write reports about the entire era, so we still have quite a bit to do.” 

Hinata turned to the next page of the book revealing a painting of an execution. “Explain this one next!”

The continued like that for the next hour and a half. Kenma explaining paintings and Hinata asking questions. He was a quick learner, he just seemed to have zero previous knowledge of art.

“Can I ask you something?” Kenma asked when they almost reached the end of the chapter.

“Like a quiz?” 

“No, just a personal question, if that's okay?”

Hinata nodded.

“Why did you take art history to begin with?” Kenma asked, hoping it's not an inappropriate question.

Hinata smiled almost apologetically. “One of my friends, when I was still in highschool, told me I wouldn't be able to do it. That I wasn't smart enough for it. “he said. “So I wanted to prove them wrong.” 

“Are you sure that's a good motivator?” Kenma asked. He liked to think of himself as a realist. He knew his own limitations.

“Oh it definitely is,” Hinata nodded quickly. “People tell me all the time that I can't do things. That I can't play volleyball because I'm so small. Or that I couldn't move past an injury and that my time playing was over.” he bit his lip. “But I don't quit. Even if I wasn't scouted for a good university team like my friend. I'm not quitting.” 

Kenma was at a loss for words. “That's incredible,” he managed to say after a moment of silence. 

Hinata gave him a watery smile. “I try,” he said and he pulled himself together for a brave grin. “But how about you? Why are you doing art?” 

“I always loved it,” Kenma said. “But I never really thought I would go to school for it. I was going to do programming or maybe science, like my best friend, but then I didn't get into the college I wanted to.” 

He wasn't sure why he was sharing all of this, but after Hinata was so honest, he felt like he could talk freely.

“And then my friend suggested I'd take art classes to get me excited for school again. After I heard that I wouldn't be going to his university I was considering just quitting all together.”

“But you didn't!” Hinata almost cheered. “You're a fighter too. You're out to prove them all wrong as well!”

Kenma wasn't so sure about that. Kuroo and his mom and his other friends from highschool all seemed convinced he could do it. The only one to prove wrong was himself.

“Well I'm glad you chose to come here!” Hinata continued. “Tonight has been a lot of fun! It's really nice to listen to you talk about all these paintings.” 

_Oh god. He was so adorable._ Kenma smiled nervously at his own hands. “You're welcome.” 

“But I'm starving!” Hinata suddenly changed the subject. “We should go get some food!” 

“Like now?” Kenma asked. Together?

“Yes, my concentration is shot anyway.” Hinata closed his book and his notepad and shoved both into his bag. “Let's go for ramen.” 

Kenma's head buzzed. “Yeah, let's do that.” 

They got up and hurried out of the library, probably to the relief of the receptionist who hadn't appreciated them talking, despite the library being almost empty the entire time. The sun was almost setting and the air was crisp. There were quite a few people out and about, probably also on their way to get dinner, but none of them bounced along the sidewalk like Hinata did. 

“I have one more awkward question,” Kenma said as they neared the ramen place. 

Hinata looked at him and Kenma noticed that his cheeks had turned pink from the cold air. 

“Could you please tell me why Yamaguchi is acting so strange?” 

Hinata frowned in confusion and then quickly shook his head. “What do you mean?” 

“He was in my room -well our room- this morning and he said he was afraid that I would hate him.” Kenma tried to recall more of the situation, but frankly he didn't think much more was said. “I'm just really confused. I know you haven't known each other that long either, but maybe you can tell me more.” 

“I promised him I wouldn't tell you,” Hinata said.

“He did?”

“Yeah, but this is getting ridiculous. By now you must think he has some kind of super secret backstory.” 

“I'm pretty sure he's not a serial killer,” 

“Yeah, he's gay,” Hinata said plainly.

“Really?” Kenma asked. “That's it? That's what he's been freaking out about?” 

“Yup,” Hinata said. “Remember Tsukkishima? The one with the glasses? Apparently they've been dating for a few years now.” 

“That's so stupid!” Kenma said, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized it wasn't stupid He himself wouldn't have known how to share his sexuality with his roommate either. He just hadn't thought much about it yet because Yamaguchi was never there. “You can tell him that it's totally fine!” 

_This is a good time,_ Kenma thought suddenly, _you could just come out now. Throw in a casual 'oh by the way, I'm also gay'._ But the thought made his stomach turn. Still. After more than two years. There was still this voice in his brain nagging him. _What if they take it the wrong way. What if they assume you have a crush on them. But you do have a bit of a crush on him._ For fucks sake, he thought he was over this. 

“I can't tell Yamaguchi!” Hinata said, pulling him back into reality. “I wasn't supposed to tell you in the first place! Hell, I only heard this from Tsukkishima.” 

Kenma took a deep breath and told his brain to shut up. “Or you could just mention to him that I'm also gay.” 

Hinata's eyes lit up “You are?” he asked. “That's great! I mean- in that case you could just tell him that!” 

“Can't you do it, though?” Kenma tried not to sound too whiny. “I have no idea how to just casually come out to people.” 

Hinata frowned. “You just did.” 

“Yes, but you have no idea how fast my heart is beating right now.” 

A grin formed around Hinata's lips. “Well, if it makes you feel any better I'm bisexual, so I know that it can be really scary.” 

That did not make Kenma feel more at ease at all. It just made his heart beat even faster. To be more precise his exact thought right now where: _'aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!'_

They had reached the restaurant and Hinata went to hold the door open. Kenma was stuck in his tracks staring into Hinata's eyes. They had had such a good time and by now Kenma had confirmed that Hinata wasn't just a straight boy who gave a lot of compliments. Maybe...

“Kenma! There you are!” 

Kenma turned his head and found Kuroo standing but ten feet away from him. 

“What are you doing here?” Kenma asked. Not sure yet how to feel. “Is something wrong?” 

“Well you don't sound very happy to see me,” Kuroo said and he pretended to pout. “All my classes for tomorrow got cancelled so I figured I'd come and surprise you. I texted you, didn't you see?”

Kenma was very confused about this sudden change in plans, but definitely not as confused as Hinata, who still held the door open and looked from Kenma to Kuroo trying to figure out what the hell was going on. 

“Hinata, this is Kuroo,” Kenma said. “He's lived in the house next to mine nearly all my life.”

“Ahh!” Hinata said as the situation started to make sense. “You should go catch up then.” 

“Really?” Kenma asked. “I thought we were-” 

“We can get ramen another time,” Hinata smiled weakly. “Your friend must have travelled quite far to get here.” 

“Are you sure?” Kenma asked. He really didn't want to mess up with Hinata. Not after they had had such a good afternoon together. But he also felt like he hadn't seen Kuroo in weeks. 

“Yeah, I'll see you around.” And with that Hinata disappeared into the restaurant leaving Kenma and Kuroo on the doorstep.

“Do I finally get a hug now?” Kuroo asked and Kenma went to close the distance between them for the tightest hug he'd had in weeks.

If you didn't count that one time Hinata hugged him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at my tiny children doing scary things!
> 
> (If you're curious about the painting you could just type 'monk by the sea' into google. It's such a beautiful piece. Everything I wrote about it is just my own interpretation, though)
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, the next one is probs gonna have a lot more angst so get ready for that.
> 
> Have a nice daaaayyyyyyyy :))

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't really been writing much lately so some feedback would be great and comments are always lovely.
> 
> I hope you have a nice day :))


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